"Kka... Kkamjjak-iya." (Gasp... You scared me.)
"Why the fuck are you so jumpy? And why are you hiding your phone like a guilty little slut? Were you looking at something nasty?"
"My period tracker app. I was just checking that."
"Hmm.... Is it already that time of the month?"
My husband's words made my heart thump even louder.
What? Is it that time already?
Is that really something a husband should say to his wife?
'I practically have to beg him to fuck me… and he doesn't even remember?'
He turned his head left and right, grumbling like he was exhausted.
"I'm too tired today. And tomorrow I have to head to the Guild early."
"Then there's nothing we can do. Don't push yourself."
"Hmm? This… is a bit surprising? You're letting me off so easily. Usually you're way more persistent about it."
I would be.
If things were normal.
I got up and started making coffee.
When my husband says he's tired, it only means one thing.
He's too tired to fuck me.
So I should quickly mix in a buff to kill his sex drive.
'Am I just a fucking buff shuttle now?'
Listening to the coffee grinder, I looked back at my past self.
I used to try so hard to look pretty for him.
But my husband never changed.
I wanted us to be a couple who desperately craved each other…
But at some point, what we wanted from each other became completely different.
"You came back earlier than expected? You said it would take a whole week."
"Hmm… I guess I'm in good shape these days. Monsters were easy to kill. I took the lead and wiped them all out."
"That's unusual. Hunters who get forcibly summoned usually don't try that hard…"
"Am I just any hunter? You know. Unlike you or Ah-young, I actually survived."
"..."
"Surviving means I'm strong."
My husband tapped his head and smiled like an idiot.
I almost snapped, "Is that something you should say in front of someone who quit being a hunter?"
But I kept my mouth shut.
Instead, I poured a strong sleep buff into his coffee to kill any chance of sex.
'What's the point of being strong everywhere else if you can't even do your job as a man?'
He wasn't usually this bad, but today my husband was especially annoying.
The way he bragged about his achievements pissed me off.
"Oh, honey. Do you know Hunter Jung Jisu-ssi?"
"Is there any hunter who doesn't know her? What kind of stupid question is that?"
"Were you in the same sinkhole as her this time?"
"Hmm… yeah, I was."
"Ah… I see… Hunter Jung Jisu-ssi came back quickly too."
"..."
"So that's why it ended so fast…"
I didn't scold him outright.
What would change if a B-rank hunter tried hard? Aren't you ashamed to act like you carried the whole thing when Jung Jisu-ssi did everything?
I just hinted at it.
"Here. The fatigue recovery buff is all used up today, so I only put in a sleep buff. Drink it when you get home."
"Hmm… I don't really feel the sleep buff anyway, so it's like drinking plain water…"
"If you had contacted me right after coming out of the sinkhole, I could've saved some. Who knew you'd be back so soon?"
Hunter Jung Jisu called her oppa.
That's why Ji-ham-ssi and I couldn't fuck.
But I wasn't completely upset about it. I was actually jealous.
'He couldn't even send me a single text…'
"You're being extra prickly today. Is it that time of the month?"
"..."
"Hmm… Alright. I'll head out first then."
My husband took the coffee and waved lightly.
"What about dinner?"
"Dinner? I already ate."
"It's been a while since we saw each other… Couldn't we at least eat together…"
"Ah, sorry, sorry. Let's eat together tomorrow. Okay? I'm leaving?"
"..."
My husband pulled out his phone and walked out of the cafe without looking back.
"I can't believe this shit…"
My husband's attitude probably didn't change suddenly.
He's probably always been like this.
If anything changed, it's just how I see him now.
"I miss Ji-ham-ssi…"
I wanted those eyes that looked at me like he was starving for me.
I wanted to be held by a man who showed with his words and actions how badly he wanted to fuck me.
I opened my photo album again and stared at the pictures.
In the photos I looked completely broken…
But I also looked incredibly happy…
Nothing like the me right now.
There's no comparison.
.
.
.
"Alright. I'll keep the fact that I awakened as secret as possible."
After a long, deep talk with Jisu,
We made a solid plan for the future.
"Oppa. Let me confirm one more time. Right now, the only people who know you can stop time are… me and that cafe owner. Right?"
"That's right. Other people might think they got hit by some weird skill, but they won't know it's time-stop."
"Was it Dahye-ssi… Can you really trust her to keep quiet? If the secret leaks, you'll have no choice but to become a hunter who goes in and out of sinkholes."
"It's fine. She's trustworthy."
"...Is that so?"
Jisu suddenly sat down across from me and frowned hard.
"You seem strangely close with that female boss?"
"I'm… her landlord. That's why we're close. And I'm a regular at her cafe."
Jisu gave me a long, suspicious stare, then suddenly asked.
"Then let me ask you one thing. That lewd mission… Did you do it to her too?"
"..."
She really has sharp senses.
Is this what an active S-class hunter is like?
"A few… times. Yeah."
"..."
Jisu let out a hollow little laugh and asked again.
"So that means she has these kinds of marks on her too?"
She showed me the bright red hickey blooming on her neck.
It probably wasn't as obvious, but there were definitely several similar kiss marks on her chest.
Dahye loved being cursed at, but she also loved rough skinship.
She reacted especially hard when I sucked, kissed, and groped her flat tits.
So naturally I left plenty of marks on her chest.
"I couldn't help it. I couldn't take the penalty."
"So how far did you go?"
"..."
Kissing and creampieing?
There was no way I could say that out loud.
"Jisu-ya. That's too personal to tell my little sister right now…"
"..."
Jisu put her hand on her forehead.
"Does your wife know? That you've been playing these dirty games?"
"…I don't think so?"
"I'm going crazy… I can't do this. I need to change the plan a bit. Oppa, let's go into a sinkhole together."
"Huh…? You just said I should keep my awakening secret."
"That husband of yours is a B-rank hunter with level over 100. He's a front-line tanker, so he doesn't have any dangerous skills, but his stats are high. You'd get crushed instantly by someone like him."
"Ah… So you're saying I need to level up?"
Jisu nodded.
"I'm saying we should prepare for anything. I can't always be there to protect you. Even with your cheat skill of stopping time, if someone ambushes you before you can say the keyword, it's over."
In the blink of an eye, Jisu's fingertips lightly touched my neck.
The attack was so fast I couldn't even see it.
With a strike like that, my head would roll before I could shout the words.
"You don't actually believe the secret will stay hidden forever, do you?"
"Y-yeah. I get what you're saying. But I'm not a hunter. Only hunters can enter sinkholes. And if I register as awakened, the whole world will force me to fight monsters."
"We'll sneak in."
"..."
"Once when entering, once when coming out. That still leaves you one time-stop use."
"Isn't that… a crime?"
Jisu chuckled at my words.
"It can't be helped."
"That's… unexpected…"
"What is?"
"Honestly, I said that ready to get half-killed… You've always hated bad deeds and insincere shit."
Especially when she was hunting villains, her sense of justice was insane.
The scariest time was when she castrated all the villains who used skills for sex crimes.
If she had found out back then that I was doing lewd shit with a married woman… I'd probably be in a hospital bed right now.
"Oppa. Fish can't live in water that's too clear. I really hate dirty things too… But you can't live cleanly in this world."
"..."
"What can I do? You're still my oppa… It's not like you went completely evil on purpose, and you're doing it because of your awakening… Getting angry won't change anything. I need to think about how to fix this situation. I need to help you so you don't fall any deeper into evil."
I'm really grateful…
But she already knew what I was doing in VR?
How… how much does she know?
Does she know I customize real people I meet and fuck them in VR?
"Oppa. Let's make one thing clear first."
Jisu's expression turned more serious than ever.
"That mission thing. It happens with women who are close to you, right?"
"T-that's right?"
"Then from now on, you can just… do that mission… to me without any long explanation. Is that okay?"
"…Huh?"
"I'm saying I'll put up with it for oppa's sake."
I was completely stunned by her words.
"When you wake up, the number of time-stop uses recharges, right? Then a new mission will target me, the closest woman."
"T-that's right."
"You said a new mission won't appear while one is still in progress. So if you get a mission from me every morning, you can go outside as much as you want."
"..."
"And then come home at night and clear it. Your growth will be slower, but it's better than dragging random women into this."
"But… then you'll have to accept everything…"
"That's why I'm saying I'll accept it."
"If… a mission that crosses the line comes up…"
"Then I'll have to take the penalty…"
"..."
"You're not… asking me to accept even that, are you?"
Jisu subtly avoided my eyes and touched her neck.
My little sister's fingertips were gently stroking the red hickey I left on her.